Brand new for this year’s BOOM (Best of Organic Market) Awards is our Organic Ambassador category, recognising those working to grow the organic movement, in areas ranging from food, to fashion and farming, championing organic as a solution to the climate crisis.
From community heroes to outspoken advocates, there are countless individuals who have made this movement what it is today.
Our shortlist features those we see working tirelessly to tell the story of organic as part of the solution for taking care of ourselves, nature and the planet.
Tick the box after casting your vote to be entered into a prize draw to win a selection of organic goodies, courtesy of this award category’s sponsors, Yeo Valley! Read our full competition terms and conditions.
Bestselling author Melissa Hemsley is an advocate of seasonal organic produce and reducing food waste - the latest of her four cookbooks ‘Eat Green’, celebrates sustainable and delicious flexitarian recipes. Melissa writes for the Telegraph and Vogue and regularly appears on cookery shows.
Championing the great work of farmers, producers, suppliers and artisans; all the faces behind the food we enjoy. She’s a proud supporter of food waste charity The Felix Project and volunteers with them rescuing and cooking surplus food.
Melissa also hosts three event series - The Sustainability Sessions, Cook Together Cook Alongs and The Feelgood Sessions, where she chats to leading chefs and food experts about topics ranging from mental health to planet-friendly kitchen tips.
Ben is a mixed organic farmer from Herefordshire, who works with nature to tackle pests and diseases on his farm, boosting biodiversity alongside crop production.
As one of the Soil Association's 'agroecology ambassadors', Ben uses social media, Instagram in particular, as a platform to teach the public and fellow farmers about agroecology and organic food production.
Ben’s also one of the founders of Agrespect, a pioneering network for rural LGBTQ+ communities with the aim to unite, celebrate and encourage greater diversity and inclusiveness in the farming world.
Growing up at Dunkertons Organic Cider Mill in Herefordshire had a major impact on Julian Dunkerton. Taking over the family business in 2014, he’s continued supporting traditional fruit growers to produce certified organic cider and perry.
As co-founder of Superdry, Julian’s passion for organic plays a major role in his vision for the company’s future. Superdry is currently supporting over 1,800 farmers to transition to organic farming methods, cultivating land across India. Superdry aim to convert 100% Pure Cotton garments to organic or organic in transition by 2025, and aim to convert 20,000 farmers to sustainable organic farming practices over the next 4 years.
Julian also owns La Boulangerie, an independent and largely-organic French bakery in the heart of the Cotswolds supplying local people and businesses.
Guy and Geetie Singh-Watson are the ultimate organic power couple! Learn more about how they've been championing the organic movement together since the 1990s...
Guy Singh-Watson – Riverford Founder:
Over the last 35 years, Guy has taken Riverford from one man and a wheelbarrow delivering homegrown organic veg to friends, to a national veg box scheme delivering to around 90,000 customers a week.
Guy converted the business to employee ownership in 2018, using the proceeds to buy a small farm and return to growing organic veg.
Guy advocates using business to shape a kinder, more considerate and sustainable world. His weekly newsletters connect people to the farm discussing the trials and tribulations of organic farming, and the occasional rant about the issues closest to his heart.
Geetie Singh-Watson MBE: Founder of organic pubs and inns
Geetie is the founder of the first official organic pub in Britain, The Duke of Cambridge, in Islington. Horrified by the wastefulness she witnessed working in the restaurant trade, she set up The Duke as a business that could thrive without harming the environment. Geetie's been leading the charge of sustainable hospitality since the 1990s, banning plastic bottles, packaged bar snacks and air-freighted food.
Geetie’s fourth organic pub, The Bull Inn, Totnes, opened in November 2019. Radical and sustainable to its core, everything has been thought through for minimal environmental impact.
In 2009, she was awarded an MBE for ‘Services to the Organic Pub Trade’, has been named Business Woman of the Year, Asian Woman of Achievement and Entrepreneur of the Year. An active campaigner and environmentalist, Geetie firmly believes that businesses must act responsibly and be led by their values.
